In this post, I argue that
Note that the ideas presented here are my own and do not relate to any company or institution I am associated with
I read the book AI Superpowers before COVID
And recently after COVID
What a difference a few months makes!
And you have to question what you are reading ..
Do we really believe any more that:
In just a few months .. none of the above seems true
More to the point – Can any one country be an AI Superpower?
Like the quest for Unicorns – are we searching for the wrong thing when we search for ‘AI Superpowers’?
The idea of AI superpowers (when applied to nations) was less about technology and more about technology policy
And technology policy is no longer a competitive advantage in itself as we stand today(post COVID) because everyone is playing in the AI nationalism game (AI nationalism – The algorithms of august )
So, can AI nationalism create a single winner? Today, other countries have started to be more directly involved in AI policy such as the call from Eric Schmidt of Google
Expanding this view going forward, we will see the development of parallel technology stacks (for better or for worse). This is already happening with Alibaba to spend 28 billion in bid for cloud autonomy
There is a recent parallel for tech policy and AI – and it’s the Telecoms model. Every country realises the strategic significance of Telecoms and seeks to safeguard its own position. This will also happen with AI. More to the point, the countries who initially gained a lead in Telecoms (Japan and Korea) subsequently became key players but not necessarily the dominant players (if you consider that the US and other countries dominate in terms of the tech stack – ex Apple and Android). And 5G also brings very clear positions.5g mobile standards may fragment driven geopolitics dean bubley. This model may well repeat with AI also with countries taking similar positions. And of-course from a technology perspective. Both USA and China will continue to have a dominant technology position.
Later in the AI Superpowers book, there is another perspective that “People are the authors of the values in the story of AI” i.e. We are not passive spectators in the story of AI – we are the authors of it. That means the values underpinning our visions of an AI future could well become self-fulfilling prophecies. If we tell ourselves that the value of human beings lies solely in their economic contribution, then we will act accordingly.
So, this view could be interpreted as AI to empower individuals and values of countries because people and nations will shape AI in their own image. That seems more relevant post COVID i.e. the empowering of people
So, in the west, what values will shape society post-covid?
I can see many social changes such as:
AI shaped by people could also empower people. I believe that the biggest victim of COVID-19 will be the assembly line model. Already, we are seeing this in Germany where meat processing industry has to be realigned. If the traditional assembly line model is broken – then the whole supply chain could be impacted. Coupled with a change in values – ex: anti consumerism, greater craftsmanship etc – AI could bring about a new type of worker who is empowered by AI.
I discussed this in a previous post- could your personality decide how you collaborate with AI?
Another way AI could empower people and countries is through the race for talent. The race for talent and creativity is the real differentiator for AI. Both UK and Canada are examples of this. Just before COVID and post Brexit – UK unveiled a much more progressive immigration policy for scientists. So, another way people drive AI and superpowers is through talent. So, apart from USA and China – a few other countries also have a strong talent pools for AI currently. These include UK, Canada, Germany, France, India, Israel, Russia and Eastern Europe.
Hence, we could widen the definition of AI superpowers to apply to people – where it will have more impact post COVID.
To conclude:
Note that the ideas presented here are my own and do not relate to any company or institution I am associated with
Image source:F W Taylor – creator of the division of labour – hence current assembly line / supply chain models
http://www.datasciencecentral.com/xn/detail/6448529:BlogPost:953858
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